Independent Transit Services Factsheet Context Approval The South Coast British Columbia Transportation The Act allows TransLink to apply terms and Authority (SCBCTA) Act includes provisions for addressing conditions prior to a service commencing operation. independent transit services (ITS). The legislation applies These may include: to any bus or rail transportation provided within the • the right to re-evaluate the ITS in the future; region by anyone other than TransLink or its subsidiaries or contractors. The TransLink Board must approve an ITS • requiring a change to the service plan; to operate, including any terms or conditions. • a defi ned notifi cation and reporting process; • conditions for negotiating use of TransLink Process infrastructure and branding; TransLink’s process for addressing a potential ITS follows • other conditions as deemed necessary. three main steps: I. defi ning if a service is an ITS; An ITS will not be authorized to operate unless all terms and conditions are met. II. application of evaluation criteria to inform recommendations; and III. TransLink Board approval or denial, including terms and conditions required for an approved service to operate. The role of independent transit services Approved independent transit services can Evaluation be considered complementary to the regional transportation system, provided they do not reduce As outlined in the Act, TransLink may grant approval to the fi nancial viability or effectiveness of TransLink. establish or operate an ITS if: 1. the ITS does not reduce the effectiveness of the regional transportation system, and 2. the ITS does not reduce the fi nancial viability of the Contact Us regional transportation system. If you have questions about existing or potential Independent Transit Services may not receive fi nancial independent transit services in Metro Vancouver contact support from TransLink. us at [email protected] translink.ca If another provider was to run the same approved service and follow the same terms and conditions until June, we would consider this to be an administrative change as it does not impact the two key criteria in the evaluation of the ITS application; 1. Impact on the financial viability of the regional transportation system and…..2. Effectiveness of the regional transportation system. As BC Ferries is no longer directly involved (given that the Queen of Capilano refit is now complete), TransLink required Peter King / Bowen Island Community Transit to provide in writing agreement his confirmation to strictly adhere to the existing ITS terms and conditions as follows; Confirming that the existing service specifications match what was approved for BC Ferries Acceptance of the terms and conditions applied to the approved service Anticipated end date of the existing service in June As of this afternoon, TransLink received the attached letter from Peter King / Bowen Island Community Transit with Adam Holbrook, David Hocking, Richard Smith also copied on his email. Beyond June 2015; We advised Peter King / Bowen Island Community Transit that running an independent transit service beyond June 2015, regardless of who operates it, would require a new evaluation and approval from the TransLink Board. Peter King / Bowen Island Community Transit was also advised that if he is considering this application, to provide details of the proposed service (e.g. routing, stops, schedule, fares, and vehicle used) and forward directly to Matt Craig, Manager, System Planning as soon as possible. Further, we advise Peter King / Bowen Island Community Transit that the TransLink Board of Directors next meets on June 25 and that we would need his application submitted directly to Matt Craig no later than end of May in order to meet deadlines for internal review and administration of Board submissions. General information about our ITS policy and process 1. ITS Policy (attached) 2. ITS Fact Sheet (attached) Both of these documents are also available on our website: http://www.translink.ca/en/Plans‐and‐Projects/Independent‐Transit‐Services.aspx Hope that helps, Kristen, to clarify the background and concerns. We will keep you posted on further developments but wanted to ensure Bowen Island Municipality was aware of the current situation in the meantime. Regards, Merrilee Merrilee Ashworth, MBA, B.Comm Manager, Business Development & Contract Services TRANSLINK | South Coast British Columbia Transportation Authority 400 ‐ 287 Nelson's Court, New Westminster, British Columbia V3L 0E7 Office; 778 375 7742 Mobile; 604 218 1246 2 "A better place to live built on transportation excellence" This e-mail and any attachments may contain confidential and privileged information. If you are not the intended recipient, please notify the sender immediately by return e-mail, delete this e-mail and destroy any copies. Any dissemination or use of this information by a person other than the intended recipient is unauthorized and may be illegal. 3 Bowen Island Community Transit Limited Cowan Road, Bowen Island, B.C. V0N1G2 Mr. Matt Craig May 13, 2015 Manager, System Planning Translink Transportation Strategy Dear Mr. Craig Re: Operating Approval for access into Translink Service Area for Bowen Express Bus With the return of the Queen of Capilano after a four month refit, the BC Ferry Corp. has terminated its chartered Express Bus service contract with Bowen Island Community Transit Ltd (BICT) as of May 5, 2015. Given the success of the four month trial in providing a direct Express Bus for Bowen Island commuters travelling between Bowen Island and Downtown Vancouver, BICT is requesting a continuation of the Independent Transit Service agreement until the end of the existing contract period in June 2015. We are asking that Bowen Island Community Transit Ltd. be granted access to the Metro Vancouver Translink Service Area under the existing terms and conditions as outlined in the present agreement between Translink and BC Ferries. BICT will maintain the existing Service Plan in terms of routing, bus stops, service schedule, fare structure and transit vehicles. BICT will respect existing transit operators in the region and not impact on their operations by not using any Translink bus stops or terminus. At the end of the term of the agreement, BICT will forward ridership statistics and customer feedback to Translink and it will also prepare and present a more comprehensive proposal for the term of one year beyond the end of this agreement. The Express Bus schedule will remain the same during the term of this agreement to better interline with the Extended Summer Schedule of the Bowen Island ferry service. Increases in seasonal traffic will offset the expanded ferry schedule in the afternoon so that connections with ferries in Horseshoe Bay can be maintained. We will continue to have service as follows: Serving the 6:30am, 7:30am and 8:30 am ferry sailings, 4:45pm, 5:50pm and 6:50 pm. These times reflect the summer ferry schedule that came into effect May 14 until October 14 It is BICT’s intention to see this service becoming permanent so that residents will have a dedicated transit option from Bowen Island to Downtown Vancouver. Sincerely, Peter D. King, President Bowen Island Community Transit Ltd. 604-828- BC Ferries Bowen Island Independent Transit Service BACKGROUND BC Ferries Bowen Island Charter Bus is a planned diesel bus service that will provide alternate travel choice between Bowen Island and Downtown Vancouver while BC Ferries refits the Queen of Capilano from January to May 2015. The Bowen Queen, the relief vessel, has a 70 vehicle capacity compared to the Queen of Capilano’s 85 vehicle capacity. To reduce the likelihood of overloads on the Bowen Queen, BC Ferries is proposing to charter a bus as an express-to-Downtown Vancouver service from January 5 to May 5, 2015. The service would offer two direct trips per day between Bowen Island and Downtown Vancouver and four trips per day between Horseshoe Bay and Downtown Vancouver. Service will be temporary and limited in span, operating Monday to Friday during peak periods only for 4 months. Service will be provided by BC Ferries and operated by Bowen Island Community Transit. The proposed charter bus service is similar to the 257 Horseshoe Bay / Vancouver Express, a 30 minute service that travels between Horseshoe Bay Ferry Terminal and Downtown Vancouver, making several stops in Horseshoe Bay, along Marine Drive in West Vancouver, and in Downtown Vancouver. Service specifications The route of the BC Ferries Bowen Island Charter Bus service within the larger West Vancouver to Downtown Vancouver service area is shown below. Figure 1: BC Ferries Bowen Island Bus Charter Route BC Ferries Bowen Island Independent Transit Service Service will operate only during the refitting of the Bowen Island ferry, anticipated to be between January 5, 2015 and May 5, 2015. Service will operate during peak periods Monday to Friday. Operating on a fixed schedule and route, the service will offer two direct trips per day between Bowen Island and Downtown Vancouver and four trips per day between Horseshoe Bay (HSB) and Downtown Vancouver. Service is intended only for Bowen residents. The planned schedule is shown below: Depart Bowen Island Depart Horseshoe Bay Ferry Terminal Arrive Downtown Vancouver 6:30 AM No scheduled stop Approx. 7:20 AM 7:55 AM (meets 7:30 AM sailing) Approx. 8:20 AM 8:50 AM (meets 8:30 AM sailing) Approx. 9:20 AM Depart Downtown Vancouver Arrive Horseshoe Bay Ferry Terminal Arrive Bowen Island Approx. 3:40 PM meets 4:30 PM sailing Approx. 4:40 PM meets 5:30 PM sailing Approx. 5:40 PM No scheduled stop (meets 6:30 PM sailing) 6:50 PM Five stops are planned: 1) Park n Ride on Bowen Island, 2) HSB drop-off loop, and 3) W. Georgia St & Burrard St, 4) W. Georgia St & Granville St, and 5) W. Georgia St & Hamilton St.